Corbie Abbey is a former
Benedictine
, image = Medalla San Benito.PNG
, caption = Design on the obverse side of the Saint Benedict Medal
, abbreviation = OSB
, formation =
, motto = (English: 'Pray and Work')
, foun ...
monastery in
Corbie
Corbie (; nl, Korbei) is a commune of the Somme department in Hauts-de-France in northern France.
Geography
The small town is situated up river from Amiens, in the département of Somme and is the main town of the canton of Corbie. It lies ...
,
Picardy
Picardy (; Picard and french: Picardie, , ) is a historical territory and a former administrative region of France. Since 1 January 2016, it has been part of the new region of Hauts-de-France. It is located in the northern part of France.
Hist ...
,
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
, dedicated to
Saint Peter
) (Simeon, Simon)
, birth_date =
, birth_place = Bethsaida, Gaulanitis, Syria, Roman Empire
, death_date = Between AD 64–68
, death_place = probably Vatican Hill, Rome, Italia, Roman Empire
, parents = John (or Jonah; Jona)
, occupat ...
. It was founded by
Balthild, the widow of
Clovis II, who had monks sent from
Luxeuil. The Abbey of Corbie became celebrated both for its library and the scriptorium.
Foundation
It was founded in about 657/661 under
Merovingian
The Merovingian dynasty () was the ruling family of the Franks from the middle of the 5th century until 751. They first appear as "Kings of the Franks" in the Roman army of northern Gaul. By 509 they had united all the Franks and northern Gaul ...
royal patronage by Balthild, widow of Clovis II, and her son
Clotaire III
Chlothar III (or ''Chlotar'', ''Clothar'', ''Clotaire'', ''Chlotochar'', or ''Hlothar'', giving rise to the name Lothair; 652–673) was the eldest son of Clovis II, king of Neustria and Burgundy, and his queen Balthild. When Clovis died in 657, C ...
. The first monks came from
Luxeuil Abbey, which had been founded by Saint
Columbanus
Columbanus ( ga, Columbán; 543 – 21 November 615) was an Irish missionary notable for founding a number of monasteries after 590 in the Frankish and Lombard kingdoms, most notably Luxeuil Abbey in present-day France and Bobbio Abbey i ...
in 590, and the Irish respect for classical learning fostered there was carried forward at Corbie. Theodefrid was the first abbot.
The rule of the founders was based on the
Benedictine rule, as Columbanus had modified it.
Its
scriptorium came to be one of the centres of work of manuscript illumination when the art was still fairly new in western Europe. The clear and legible hand known as
Carolingian minuscule
Carolingian minuscule or Caroline minuscule is a script which developed as a calligraphic standard in the medieval European period so that the Latin alphabet of Jerome's Vulgate Bible could be easily recognized by the literate class from one reg ...
was also developed at the
scriptorium at Corbie, as well as a distinctive style of
illumination. In this early
Merovingian
The Merovingian dynasty () was the ruling family of the Franks from the middle of the 5th century until 751. They first appear as "Kings of the Franks" in the Roman army of northern Gaul. By 509 they had united all the Franks and northern Gaul ...
period, the work of Corbie was innovative in that it showed pictures of people, for example,
Saint Jerome. Dr. Tino Licht of
Heidelberg University
}
Heidelberg University, officially the Ruprecht Karl University of Heidelberg, (german: Ruprecht-Karls-Universität Heidelberg; la, Universitas Ruperto Carola Heidelbergensis) is a public research university in Heidelberg, Baden-Württemberg, ...
discovered a manuscript from Corbie Abbey written in the Caroline minuscule that predates
Charlemagne
Charlemagne ( , ) or Charles the Great ( la, Carolus Magnus; german: Karl der Große; 2 April 747 – 28 January 814), a member of the Carolingian dynasty, was King of the Franks from 768, King of the Lombards from 774, and the first E ...
's rule. According to Dr. Licht, "They were trying it out. In the Middle Ages a script like this ...was developed as part of the living tradition of a scriptorium. In the 8th century Corbie was something akin to a laboratory for new scripts."
Besides gifts of estates to support the abbey, many exemptions were granted to the abbots, to free them from interference from local bishops: the exemptions were confirmed in 855 by
Pope Benedict III. The abbots ranked as
count
Count (feminine: countess) is a historical title of nobility in certain European countries, varying in relative status, generally of middling rank in the hierarchy of nobility. Pine, L. G. ''Titles: How the King Became His Majesty''. New York ...
s and had the privilege of a
mint
MiNT is Now TOS (MiNT) is a free software alternative operating system kernel for the Atari ST system and its successors. It is a multi-tasking alternative to TOS and MagiC. Together with the free system components fVDI device drivers, XaAE ...
.
Medieval period
Corbie continued its intimate links with the royal house of the Carolingians. In 774
Desiderius, last
King of the Lombards
The Kings of the Lombards or ''reges Langobardorum'' (singular ''rex Langobardorum'') were the monarchs of the Lombard people from the early 6th century until the Lombardic identity became lost in the 9th and 10th centuries. After 568, the Lomba ...
, was exiled here after his defeat by
Charlemagne
Charlemagne ( , ) or Charles the Great ( la, Carolus Magnus; german: Karl der Große; 2 April 747 – 28 January 814), a member of the Carolingian dynasty, was King of the Franks from 768, King of the Lombards from 774, and the first E ...
. From 850 to 854
Charles, the future Archbishop of Mainz, was confined here. Members of the Carolingian house sometimes served as abbots; the ninth abbot was Saint
Adalard, one of Charlemagne's cousins. Under Adalard, the monastic school of Corbie attained great celebrity and about the same time it sent forth a colony to found the
Abbey of Corvey in Saxony.
[
In the ninth century Corbie was larger than St. Martin's Abbey at Tours, or Saint Denis at Paris. At its height it housed 300 monks. Three of Corbie's scholars were Ratramnus (died ''c''. 868), Radbertus Paschasius (died 865) and Hadoard.
Saint ]Gerald of Sauve-Majeure
Saint Gerald of Sauve-Majeure (sometimes also Gerard or Geraud) ( 1025–1095), also known, from his place of origin, as Gerald of Corbie, was a Benedictine abbot.
Life
Saint Gerald was born in Corbie, Picardy, and was educated at the abbey of Cor ...
was born in Corbie and became a child oblate at the Abbey, where he then became a monk and served as cellarer. He later went on to found Grande-Sauve Abbey
Grande-Sauve Abbey or Sauve-Majeure Abbey is a former Benedictine monastery near the present village of La Sauve in the department of the Gironde, in a region once heavily forested. Although now in ruins, the remains of the abbey are still of ...
.
In 1137 a fire destroyed the monastic buildings but they were rebuilt on a larger scale. Saint Colette of Corbie's father worked as a carpenter at the Abbey. After her parents died, in 1402 she joined the Third Order of St. Francis
The Third Order of Saint Francis is a third order in the Franciscan tradition of Christianity, founded by the medieval Italian Catholic friar Francis of Assisi.
The preaching of Francis and his disciples caused many married men and women to w ...
,[Farmer, David (ed.) ''Oxford Dictionary of Saints'', Oxford University Press (1997), p. 108] and became a hermit
A hermit, also known as an eremite ( adjectival form: hermitic or eremitic) or solitary, is a person who lives in seclusion. Eremitism plays a role in a variety of religions.
Description
In Christianity, the term was originally applied to a C ...
under the direction of the Abbot of Corbie, and lived near the abbey church. She later founded the Colettine Poor Clares.
Commendatory abbots were introduced in 1550, amongst those that held the benefice was Cardinal Mazarin. The somewhat drooping fortunes of the abbey were revived in 1618, when it was one of the first to be incorporated into the new Congregation of Saint Maur. At its suppression in 1790 the buildings were partly demolished, but the church remains to this day, with its imposing portal and western towers.[
]
Library
Corbie was renowned for its library, which was assembled from as far as Italy, and for its scriptorium. The contents of its library are known from catalogues of the eleventh and twelfth centuries. In addition to its patristic
Patristics or patrology is the study of the early Christian writers who are designated Church Fathers. The names derive from the combined forms of Latin ''pater'' and Greek ''patḗr'' (father). The period is generally considered to run from ...
writings, it is recognized as an important center for the transmission of the works of Antiquity
Antiquity or Antiquities may refer to:
Historical objects or periods Artifacts
*Antiquities, objects or artifacts surviving from ancient cultures
Eras
Any period before the European Middle Ages (5th to 15th centuries) but still within the histo ...
to the Middle Ages
In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...
. An inventory (of perhaps the 11th century) lists the church history of Hegesippus, now lost, among other extraordinary treasures.
Among students of Tertullian
Tertullian (; la, Quintus Septimius Florens Tertullianus; 155 AD – 220 AD) was a prolific early Christian author from Carthage in the Roman province of Africa. He was the first Christian author to produce an extensive corpus of L ...
, the library is of interest as it contained a number of unique copies of Tertullian's works, the so-called ''corpus Corbiense'' and included some of his unorthodox Montanist
Montanism (), known by its adherents as the New Prophecy, was an early Christian movement of the late 2nd century, later referred to by the name of its founder, Montanus. Montanism held views about the basic tenets of Christian theology simi ...
treatises, as well as two works by Novatian
Novatian (c. 200–258) was a scholar, priest, and theologian. He is considered by the Catholic Church to have been an antipope between 251 and 258. Some Greek authors give his name as Novatus, who was an African presbyter.
He was a noted the ...
issued pseudepigraphically under Tertullian's name. The origin of this group of non-orthodox texts has not satisfactorily been identified.
Among students of medieval architecture and engineering, such as are preserved in the notebooks of Villard de Honnecourt
Villard de Honnecourt (''Wilars dehonecort'', ''Vilars de Honecourt'') was a 13th-century artist from Picardy in northern France. He is known to history only through a surviving portfolio or "sketchbook" containing about 250 drawings and designs ...
, Corbie is of interest as the center of renewed interest in geometry and surveying techniques, both theoretical and practical, as they had been transmitted from Euclid
Euclid (; grc-gre, Εὐκλείδης; BC) was an ancient Greek mathematician active as a geometer and logician. Considered the "father of geometry", he is chiefly known for the '' Elements'' treatise, which established the foundations of ...
through the ''Geometria'' of Boethius
Anicius Manlius Severinus Boethius, commonly known as Boethius (; Latin: ''Boetius''; 480 – 524 AD), was a Roman senator, consul, ''magister officiorum'', historian, and philosopher of the Early Middle Ages. He was a central figure in the t ...
and works by Cassiodorus
Magnus Aurelius Cassiodorus Senator (c. 485 – c. 585), commonly known as Cassiodorus (), was a Roman statesman, renowned scholar of antiquity, and writer serving in the administration of Theodoric the Great, king of the Ostrogoths. ''Senator'' ...
(Zenner).
In 1638, Cardinal Richelieu
Armand Jean du Plessis, Duke of Richelieu (; 9 September 1585 – 4 December 1642), known as Cardinal Richelieu, was a French clergyman and statesman. He was also known as ''l'Éminence rouge'', or "the Red Eminence", a term derived from the ...
ordered the transfer of 400 manuscripts transferred to the library of the monastery of Saint-Germain-des-Prés in Paris. During the French Revolution
The French Revolution ( ) was a period of radical political and societal change in France that began with the Estates General of 1789 and ended with the formation of the French Consulate in November 1799. Many of its ideas are conside ...
, the library was closed and the last of the monks dispersed: 300 manuscripts still at Corbie were moved to Amiens
Amiens (English: or ; ; pcd, Anmien, or ) is a city and commune in northern France, located north of Paris and south-west of Lille. It is the capital of the Somme department in the region of Hauts-de-France. In 2021, the population of ...
, 15 km to the west. Those at St-Germain des Prés were released on the market, and many rare manuscript
A manuscript (abbreviated MS for singular and MSS for plural) was, traditionally, any document written by hand – or, once practical typewriters became available, typewritten – as opposed to mechanically printed or reproduced i ...
s were obtained by Russian diplomat Peter P. Dubrovsky and sent to St. Petersburg. Other Corbie manuscripts are at the '' Bibliothèque Nationale''. Over two hundred manuscripts from the great library at Corbie are known to survive.
Modern times
Jean Mabillon, the father of paleography
Palaeography ( UK) or paleography ( US; ultimately from grc-gre, , ''palaiós'', "old", and , ''gráphein'', "to write") is the study of historic writing systems and the deciphering and dating of historical manuscripts, including the analysi ...
, had been a monk at Corbie. The village of Corbie grew up round Corbie Abbey and was close to the fighting during the Battle of the Somme
The Battle of the Somme (French: Bataille de la Somme), also known as the Somme offensive, was a battle of the First World War fought by the armies of the British Empire and French Third Republic against the German Empire. It took place be ...
. Between 22 April and 10 May 1918, Corbie was heavily shelled by the Germans and the church sustained many direct hits.
Burials
* Radbertus Paschasius
*Saint Martin of Arades
Saint Martin of Arades, also called Martin of Corbie (died on 26 November 726 in Saint-Priest-sous-AixeJ. Corblet, ''Hagiographie du diocèse d'Amiens'', III, Parijs - Amiens, 1873, p224), was a canonized monk from Corbie Abbey, whose feast day is ...
(died 726)
* Desiderius (died here)
List of abbots
This list is drawn from the ''Dictionnaire d'Histoire et de Géographie Ecclesiastique''.
;Regular abbots
;Commendatory abbots
*1522-1550 : Cardinal Philippe I de La Chambre
*1550-1556 : Sébastien II de La Chambre
*1556-1558 : Cardinal Louis de Bourbon-Vendôme
*1558-1580 : cardinal Charles de Bourbon
*1580-1603 : cardinal Louis II de Lorraine
*1603-1623 : cardinal Louis III de Lorraine
*1623-1643 : Henri II de Lorraine-Guise
*1643-1645 : cardinal Jules Mazarin
Cardinal Jules Mazarin (, also , , ; 14 July 1602 – 9 March 1661), born Giulio Raimondo Mazzarino () or Mazarini, was an Italian cardinal, diplomat and politician who served as the chief minister to the Kings of France Louis XIII and Louis XI ...
*1645-1647 : Camille Pamphili
*1647-1661 : cardinal Jules Mazarin
Cardinal Jules Mazarin (, also , , ; 14 July 1602 – 9 March 1661), born Giulio Raimondo Mazzarino () or Mazarini, was an Italian cardinal, diplomat and politician who served as the chief minister to the Kings of France Louis XIII and Louis XI ...
(again)
*1661-1669 : Vacance
*1669-1693 : Philippe II de Savoie-Carignan
*1693-1713 : cardinal Toussaint de Forbin-Janson
Toussaint de Forbin-Janson also known simply as Cardinal de Janson (1 October 1631 – 24 March 1713) was a French Catholic Cardinal and Bishop of Beauvais.
Early life
As a boy, Janson joined the Knights of Malta and then the army of the ...
*1713-1742 : cardinal Melchior de Polignac
*1742-1755 : Jean-François Boyer
Jean-François Boyer (12 March 1675 in Paris – 20 August 1755 in Versailles), was a French bishop, best known for having been a vehement opponent of Jansenism and the Philosophe school.
Life
Boyer was a preacher, and the bishop of Mirepo ...
*1755-1788 : cardinal Paul de Luynes
*1788-1792 : cardinal Étienne-Charles de Loménie de Brienne
See also
* Merovingian script
Notes
Further reading
* David Ganz: ''Corbie in the Carolingian Renaissance'' (Beihefte der Francia, 20), Sigmaringen (Thorbecke) 1990,
Online on perspectivia.net
*
External links
''Apologeticum'' from Corbie]
Les grandes heures de Corbie
timeline (in French and English)
(Paschasius Radbert)
{{Authority control
Corbie Abbey,
Benedictine monasteries in France
Carolingian architecture
Libraries in France
Christian monasteries established in the 7th century
Irish monastic foundations in continental Europe
Merovingian architecture
Buildings and structures in Somme (department)
Churches in Somme (department)
Organizations based in Hauts-de-France
7th-century churches in France